California Hit By 39 Quakes In 24 Hours As Scientists Warn Of "Movement Along The San Andreas Fault"

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-11-03/california-hit-39-quakes-24-hours-scientists-warn-movement-along-san-andreas-fault




by Tyler Durden
Sat, 11/03/2018 - 19:45

Authored by Michael Snyder via The Economic Collapse blog

A series of large earthquakes has rattled California over the last 24 hours, and scientists are telling us that the shaking was the result of “movement along the San Andreas Fault system”.



In recent months there has been an alarming amount of seismic activity all along “the Ring of Fire”, and there have been times when the number of global earthquakes has been way above normal.  Could it be possible that all of this unusual seismic activity is leading up to something?  As you will see below, experts are telling us that we are overdue for the “Big One” to hit California. And when it does eventually strike, it could be far worse than most people would dare to imagine.
Most of the 39 significant earthquakes that have struck California within the last 24 hours have happened along the San Andreas Fault.  The following comes from CBS News…

A swarm of earthquakes along the San Andreas Fault, the largest measuring a 4.1 magnitude, rumbled through the Hollister area and the Salinas Valley Friday morning. CBS San Francisco, citing officials, reports the quakes rattled nerves but caused no major damage.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the 4.1 quake hit at 5:58 a.m. PDT 12 miles southwest of the small community of Tres Pinos. It was followed by quakes measuring 3.6, 3.2 and 3.0.

Officials are saying that this shaking was caused by “movement along the San Andreas Fault system”, and the initial magnitude 4.1 quake was quickly followed by a series of more than 20 aftershocks…

After a magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck 12 miles from Hollister at 5:58 a.m., more than 20 aftershocks rattled the area in the following hours. The smaller quakes registered as high as 3.6 magnitude and were felt as far away as Monterey and Santa Cruz.

When you live in an area that sits along a major earthquake fault, it can be easy to forget the potential danger if nothing happens for an extended period of time.

But the danger is always there, and for many California residents the rattling that we witnessed on Friday was a clear reminder of that fact.

Thankfully, these earthquakes did not cause substantial damage, but local residents were definitely shaken up…

One in Hollister said: “Was asleep, felt like someone was shaking the bed.”

Another resident in Monterey Bay expressed concern that recent quakes could indicate a major earthquake – commonly known as the ‘Big One’ – could be on the way.

They wrote: “Been feeling a lot of tremors the last several months.

“The Hayward Fault is overdue and coming to thump. Any time now. It’s definitely coming relatively soon.”

Hopefully this current shaking will fizzle out and things will go back to normal.

But experts tell us that California is definitely overdue for a major earthquake and that “the Big One” will happen at some point…

Experts say California is overdue for a huge earthquake with some warning a major magnitude 7.0 is likely within the next 30 years.

A 2008 report by USGS described the Hayward Fault, which runs to the east of San Francisco, as a “tectonic time bomb” which could threaten the city’s seven million residents.

And when “the Big One” does strike, it could potentially be far worse than most people have ever imagined.

In a previous article, I quoted from a news story about a recent study that concluded that a major earthquake could potentially “plunge large parts of California into the sea almost instantly”...

The Big One may be overdue to hit California, but scientists near LA have found a new risk for the area during a major earthquake.

They claim that if a major tremor hits the area, it could plunge large parts of California into the sea almost instantly.
The discovery was made after studying the Newport-Inglewood fault, which has long been believed to be one of Southern California’s danger zones.

When I first read that, I was absolutely stunned.

But according to Cal State Fullerton professor Matt Kirby, there is a very strong possibility that this could actually happen someday…

Cal State Fullerton professor Matt Kirby, who worked with the Leeper on the study, said the sinking would occur quickly and likely result in part of California being covered by the sea.

“It’s something that would happen relatively instantaneously,” Prof Kirby said. “Probably today if it happened, you would see seawater rushing in.”

The fact that our planet is entering a time of unprecedented seismic activity has been a major theme in my work for a very long time, and I am particularly concerned about the west coast.  Just a few weeks ago, there was some unusual shaking farther north along the Cascadia Subduction Zone, and I anticipate that the shaking of coastal areas will continue to intensify until things finally break loose.

And the truth is that we can see signs of impending change all around us.  Down in southern California, a “moving sinkhole” is now traveling up to 60 feet a day, and it is “destroying everything in its path”…

It is the beginning of the San Andreas fault, where experts fear ‘The Big One’ could begin.

But a small, bubbling pool of mud that stinks of rotting eggs near the Salton Sea is causing concern.


Dubbed ‘the slow one’, experts studying the phenomenon say it is similar to a ‘moving sinkhole’ – and is speeding up, destroying everything in its path.

Imperial County officials studying the muddy spring say it has has been increasing in speed through – first 60 feet over a few months, and then 60 feet in a single day.

Of course this is not just a west coast phenomenon.  We have been witnessing unusual seismic activity all over the world, and it has become very clear that our planet is becoming increasingly unstable.

Natural disasters are going to continue to grow worse and worse, and that is going to have extremely serious implications for all of us.

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In my geology and seismic studies classes, an often-repeated doctrine is that many small earthquakes are far better than none at all, since small ones, such as less than 4.5 on the Richter scale, actually RELIEVE internal stresses, whereas none at all could result in forces building up until a major break occurs, with moment magnitude measurements coming into play with moment magnitude 6.0 and higher, which are very destructive. This moment magnitude technology uses more sophisticated recording and measuring devices that take into account more constitutive aspects than those of which the Richter scale was capable.
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So lots of small quakes can be looked at in two ways, either they are good news, or, if they presage a coming large break, they could be bad news.
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If you're sifting reports only looking for doomsayers, you'll find them, but don't overlook the more positive opinions which anticipate gradual release of pent-up stress, which is GOOD.
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We don't have a lot of historical data go by, since hundreds of years ago, before the Richter scale technology, the intensity of quakes was reported by a rather curious method which goes back to ancient Roman times, the Mercalli scale, which boils down to taking a poll among the surviving witnesses. Long ago, Numerals up to VI or VII were fairly common, but above that were fairly rare. Bottom line: these old Mercalli ratings were subjective.
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Today, they use Roman Numerals, from I to XII, I being the weakest quakes with no damage, up to XII being the most devastating which includes witnesses reporting having seen the ground rippling with the quake waves, and much destruction of the ground surface and of course buildings.
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In 1931 the Modified Mercalli scale was developed, which categorizes each Numeral with specific details.
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http://geosurvey.ohiodnr.gov/earthquakes-ohioseis/seismic-magnitude-intensity-scales/mercalli-scale-defined
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The Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale is a semi-quantitative linear scale developed in 1931 by the American seismologists Harry Wood and Frank Neumann. This scale is composed of 12 increasing levels of intensity, designated by Roman numerals, ranging from imperceptible shaking to catastrophic destruction. It does not have a mathematical basis; instead it is an arbitrary ranking based on observed effects. Intensity measures the strength of shaking produced by the earthquake at a certain location and is determined from effects on people, human structures, and the natural environment.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercalli_intensity_scale
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[The following chart doesn't copy very well]:
I. Not felt  

Not felt except by very few under especially favorable conditions.

II. Weak  

Felt only by a few people at rest, especially on upper floors of buildings.

III. Weak  

Felt quite noticeably by people indoors, especially on upper floors of buildings. Many people do not recognize it as an earthquake. Standing motor cars may rock slightly. Vibrations similar to the passing of a truck. Duration estimated.

IV. Light  

Felt indoors by many, outdoors by few during the day. At night, some awakened. Dishes, windows, doors disturbed; walls make cracking sound. Sensation like heavy truck striking building. Standing motor cars rocked noticeably.

V. Moderate  

Felt by nearly everyone; many awakened. Some dishes, windows broken. Unstable objects overturned. Pendulum clocks may stop.

VI. Strong  

Felt by all, many frightened. Some heavy furniture moved; a few instances of fallen plaster. Damage slight.

VII. Very strong  

Damage negligible in buildings of good design and construction; slight to moderate in well-built ordinary structures; considerable damage in poorly built or badly designed structures; some chimneys broken.

VIII. Severe  

Damage slight in specially designed structures; considerable damage in ordinary substantial buildings with partial collapse. Damage great in poorly built structures. Fall of chimneys, factory stacks, columns, monuments, walls. Heavy furniture overturned.

IX. Violent  

Damage considerable in specially designed structures; well-designed frame structures thrown out of plumb. Damage great in substantial buildings, with partial collapse. Buildings shifted off foundations. Liquefaction.

X. Extreme  

Some well-built wooden structures destroyed; most masonry and frame structures destroyed with foundations. Rails bent.

XI. Extreme  

Few, if any, (masonry) structures remain standing. Bridges destroyed. Broad fissures in ground. Underground pipe lines completely out of service. Earth slumps and land slips in soft ground. Rails bent greatly.

XII. Extreme

Damage total. Waves seen on ground surfaces. Lines of sight and level distorted. Objects thrown upward into the air.

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The modern moment magnitude scale goes up to 10, which is theoretically a quake so strong it would destroy the world. 
It graduates exponentially, such that a MM8 multiplied by 10 is a MM9 quake.
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I agree with you. I would rather have the small earthquakes than the big one we had in Northridge California on January 17, 1994 at 4:30:55 am. Although it only registered a 6.7, yet that one would be rather small in comparison with a 9.0. We woke up to sounds of glass crashing, but with no power for 48 hours.

Did you ever see the damage done at CSUN, which was near the epicenter?
Many of the buildings at that university had to be rebuilt.

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Yes, I saw the 12 story dormitories that were evacuated of people but not personal property and red tagged prohibiting any entrance.
Students had family photos, textbooks, school papers, wardrobe, Jєωelry, cash, unique docuмents, term papers, all of it lost.
They stood there like ghosts for several weeks and then wrecking balls knocked them down, with all their contents.
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The parking structure at Northridge Fashion Plaza had to be completely redone in the support columns, which are now tall cone shapes.
Many high rise buildings even on Ventura Blvd. had to get their base plates replaced since the original ones cracked with the uplift.
The Northridge quake had the largest uplift component yet of any recorded earthquake, over 1.4 G vertical.
That's like gravity plus 40% more going UP instead of down.
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I heard the freeway overpass of the 118 at Gothic Avenue explode before it came crashing down, since I lived about 500 yards away.
Its support columns footed in alluvial riverbed, sank into the ground because of liquefaction, overstressing the overpass, exploding it.
If anyone had been on the freeway they would have seen the road blow up in front of them like a bomb blast.
But somehow there wasn't any traffic just then.
Clarence Wayne Dean wasn't so lucky. He was a motorcycle cop on his way to work when the CA-14 overpass at the I-5 fell down.
He was about 150 feet up going 65 mph on the bridge when the whole bridge roadway dropped down in front of him. 
He had nowhere to go but down, and they say he was killed on impact. The bridge was rebuilt and this time, improved.
The new interchange to this day bears his name, the Clarence Wayne Dean Interchange.
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A friend of mine was a paleontologist, to whom I described the sound I heard just before the shock wave struck my house.
He said that geologists refer to that groaning noise as "The Voice of God."
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The US military sent a Potable Water truck, to park at the shopping center at Zelzah south of Chatsworth, but nobody wanted that water.
Because about 40 yards away was a semi trailer from Arrowhead Water Co. parked on the street with a long line of people holding jugs.
That shiny chrome tanker was probably the best advertising Arrowhead ever did.
Just the LOOK of olive drab vs. shiny chrome made the choice a no-brainer.
To remove all doubt, I went over to the OD truck and got a sample, then spent a few minutes talking to the attendants in GI camo fatigues.
They made no apologies, saying "This water is technically safe, but if you prefer Arrowhead -- I honestly can't blame you."
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Only one local supermarket remained open for business, the Albertsons on Sepulveda north of Devonshire - about at Hiawatha.
That center is now entirely remodeled and the Albertsons - later Ralphs, is gone, replaced with a strip mall.
I watched the reconstruction, and I have my doubts about the new buildings as to their seismic endurability.
The old store must have been built very well, because it only endured minimal structural damage, mostly the roofing.
The walls and roof framing were all in great shape. And that was a huge roof, about 80,000 square feet with no interior shear walls.
Albersons allowed customers to stand outside the entrance doors where they set up a table, with about 4 employees.
You could hand them a list or read it off to them and they would run through the store picking up your items.
They had to go down aisles carefully because of all the broken glass everywhere.
They would total the prices of your items and did not add sales tax for anything, using a battery powered calculator.
And when you gave them a $20 bill for paying $17.76, they counted back the change:


The manager told me he had to train them how to do that because all his clerks only knew to give change by what's on the register display.
But the register didn't work because the power was out.
They had an emergency generator but were keeping that for the refrigeration only, plus a bare minimum of lighting.
All the other stores didn't bother opening their doors because clerks didn't know how to count out a customer's change.
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My whole block set up tents in their front yards.
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I had neighbors from Armenia and they broke out the barbecue and turned it into a block party.
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Everyone got to know each other suddenly. 
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It was a very effective way of overcoming the terror of the initial experience. 
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The children thought it was fun, actually, as most of them had slept through the quake.
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My Armenian neighbors refused to set foot in their house for about 4 days -- it's a cultural thing.
In Armenia, where unreinforced masonry (URM) is commonplace, going into a building risking an aftershock is tantamount to ѕυιcιdє.